Adjunct professors at San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI)--otherwise known as "Visiting Faculty," regardless of how long they have been teaching at the school--filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on Tuesday, April 8, for a union election to join SEIU Local 1021, just two weeks after adjunct professors at Mills College filed theirs.

Like their counterparts at Mills and so many other colleges and universities across the country, adjuncts at SFAI point to inadequate pay, a dearth of benefits like health insurance or retirement plans, scarcity of opportunities for promotion or long-term contracts, lack of transparency on the administration's part about where student tuition funds are going, and limited to no voice in governance as reasons for forming a union. Forming a union will oblige administration to confer with them about the direction of the school as well as how its resources are allocated.

“Improving working conditions for faculty will also improve learning conditions for students. Collectively, we can help shape the university in positive ways for everyone," explains Nick Lally, an adjunct professor in the Department of Math and Design Technology.

Sign the community petition of support to ask SFAI administration to remain neutral and not spend student tuition dollars fighting this union organizing effort here!